Two Plus Jilly

Family Pictures

2012-01-09T19:58:00.000-06:00

If has been years since me, my sister and my mom have had any pictures taken together so while she was visiting from Colorado she wanted us to get some made. Saturday after Jillian's party we all went to the Target portrait studio to get some made. I think for having a worn out little girl they turned out pretty good!

Carnival 4th Birthday Party

2012-01-08T11:19:00.000-06:00

Yesterday was the big day, it was Jillian's 4th Birthday Carnival!

We all had a blast and I would call it a success! I wanted to share with you some of the photos and I plan on sharing a tutorial for the cupcakes soon!

The party invitaions were made by GwynnWassonDesigns and the printables (cupcake wrappers, birthday banner) were designed by TypeWink, both on etsy.

I'm still here.... I PROMISE!

2012-01-05T13:36:00.001-06:00

Life has been CRAZY! Since my last post I received TONS of wreath orders. I was so slammed with making wreaths I didn't have much time for anything else. Then the first part of November I had about 10 orders for Thanksgiving shirts so I was busy with those. It was a blessing I got the orders, the money I made payed for all of our spending money at Disney!!!

The week before Thanksgiving Michael and I surprised Jillian with a trip to Disney World! We all had a BLAST and we are already planning our next trip! I joked with our travel agent that we have turned into "Disney people" and she said we must have drank the water! Soon I'll share with you some of the cute outfits I made and ordered for Jillian to wear on the trip.

When we got back it I was in full Christmas mode and had a bunch of shirt orders and shopping to do.

Two days after Christmas was Jillian's 4th Birthday! I took the afternoon off work and Michael and I took her and her best friend Emma to a movie and out for frozen yogurt! Tomorrow is the big party day and I can't wait to share the details with you. I planned a CARNIVAL! We have games, booths, cotton candy machine, popcorn..... the works! My mom will be in town for a few days but after she leaves hopefully I'll have a little more time to blog and share the party details with you.

I hope to spend a little more time over here in my little section of the www to share my recipes, crafts and random stuff with you all. See ya soon!

Unicorn

2011-09-12T21:51:00.000-05:00

This weekend I took a break from wreath making and worked on a shirt for Jillian. I got this outfit at Walmart for only $10 and knew it would be perfect to add something to.

What do you think?

Jillian loves the outfit and had to wear it to school today!

Wreaths, Wreaths and More Wreaths pt. 3

2011-09-07T21:37:00.000-05:00

So, are you sick of wreaths yet???

Check out my Vandy and Florida versions.

Wreaths, Wreaths and More Wreaths pt.2

2011-09-04T17:09:00.000-05:00

I've been a very busy bee working on wreaths. I've cut myself with thread from the fabric and burned just about every finger with hot glue but I am having so much fun making all these different wreaths!

Check out my house divided wreaths.

Alabama and Auburn

Southern Miss and Miss State

Georgia

Wreaths, Wreaths and More Wreaths!

2011-08-30T21:46:00.000-05:00

After I posted my Alabama wreath on facebook I got TONS of orders and request for other schools! I am having so much fun making all the different wreaths. So far I have completed wreaths for Tennessee and Auburn and wreaths in the works for Georgia, Florida, Southern Mississippi and Vandy!

These are my Auburn and Tenneessee wreaths and I'll be sure to come back and share the others when they are completed!

Womb Mates

2011-08-30T06:32:00.001-05:00

Last fall I was asked to make some Womb Mates shirts for a friend to give to one of her friends that was expecting twins. I came up with a simple circle design with Womb Mates in the center. The mommy to be was having a boy and a girl so I chose to use a light pink fabric on one and blue on the other. The shirts came out so cute that the twins Mommy just hired me to make a second set of shirts since the twins have out grown their first set! I thought you all might like seeing these cute little onesies (is there are correct way to spell that? spell check never tells me).

Since those shirts were such a hit I knew that I had to make Jillian's teacher that is expecting twin girls some womb mate shirts for them! I am a little bummed that the blue thread I used didn't show up as bright on the fabric as I would have hoped but in person you can read them much better than this picture I snapped with my cruddy camera.

Parmesan Knots - Pintrest Find

2011-08-28T09:32:00.000-05:00

Have I told you how much I LOVE Pintrest? I have always had a problem with organizing my bookmarks, half the time I save something and then forget about it. Well, with Pintrest I can just look at my boards and easily find what I am looking for. If you aren't on Pintrest and want an invite leave me your email address and I will send you one!

One of my favorite things to pin are recipes. I found this recipe, I think one of the people I am following posted it and it was too easy not to try! I made these to go along with Baked Spaghetti and they were the perfect addition!

The Easy Parmesan Knots recipe is from Real Mom Kitchen, head on over to check it out!

Roll Tide Wreath

2011-08-24T06:51:00.003-05:00

I decided this football season we needed a little bit of Roll Tide for our front porch! This wreath was SO simple to make and the only things I had to buy were the wreath form & the pendant.

I wrapped a wreath (I used the kind from Hobby Lobby that are plastic filled with wood chips) with hounds tooth fabric. I just tore strips about 3 inches wide and wrapped away hot gluing as I went.

Then I made some flowers with small strips of different fabrics, if you would like a tutorial on the flowers let me know! I purchased the Crimson Tide pendant at Party City.

I think the wreath looks great on our crimson door!

Do to popularity I have decided to make and sell my wreaths! If you would like an Alabama or Auburn (boooo!) wreath please let me know, they are only $25! If you have another school in mind let me know and we can see if we can work out a design!

Roll Tide

2011-08-23T19:21:00.001-05:00

Those of you that don't know me personally probably don't know it but we live in Alabama and we are BIG University of Alabama football fans! Football season kicks off in less than two weeks and we are in full Roll Tide mode! Last night I decided to whip up a hounds tooth ribbon skirt to go along with a top I made Jillian last year.

The skirt was so easy to make! I just used ribbon and hot glue! I plan on hand washing it since I don't know how well the hot glue will hold in the wash. Last week I made another skirt like this with some Little Mermaid ribbon, once I make the shirt to go with it I will share it with you!

Let me know if you would be interested in a tutorial, I'd be glad to take step by step pictures of my next one if you would like!

I purchased the shirt on Ebay last fall, it was made by Gymboree a few years ago. I think it works perfect for some Roll Tide gear!

My friend Shara ordered this bow for Jillian last fall from a seller on Etsy, it's it adorable???

We are ready to cheer on the Crimson Tide!

Tomorrow I will share with you my new Alabama wreath that I made for the front door!

stuff I've been working on

2011-07-24T19:06:00.002-05:00

Lately I've been doing some applique work and wanted to share with you a few of my projects. The first two are shirts I've had sitting around to do for Jillian since May. She is so happy with them and loves showing them off!

One of my friends from high school asked me to make some shirts for her daughter and soon to be born son.

We are leaving soon for our annual family beach trip and I decided to make beach towels for Jillian, my neices Mackenzie and Ensley and my nephew Russ. I hope they all like them as much as I do!

Homemade Playdough

2011-07-24T11:18:00.003-05:00

I got the idea to make homemade playdough with Jillian from Pintrest but all the recipes I would find called for either Cream of Tarter or Koolaid and we had neither in the house so I had to come up with my own recipe. I looked online to see if there were any good substitutes for Cream of Tarter and several things said substitute lemon juice so that's what we did!

Jillian's Homemade Playdough

4 Cups All Purpose Flour
4 Cups water
8 teaspoons of Lemon Juice
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons salt
food coloring (I prefer gel color)

Mix all ingredients except the food coloring in a pan on the stove. Cook the mixture over medium heat, stirring frequently until the mixture dries up to the consistency of playdough. Our playdough was on the stove for about 15 minutes.

Remove the dough from the pan and sit it on the counter to cool. Once cooled divide the dough into sections for coloring, we colored our playdough four different colors. You might want to wear gloves when mixing the color in because it's easiest to do it by hand, I didn't have any gloves so my hands are currently multicolored!

You can easily cut the recipe in half or make an even bigger batch. Our finish playdough almost fills up a gallon ziplock bag.

Now it's time to play! Jillian enjoyed using different kitchen gadgets to make me playdough food!

Pampered Chef & a GIVEAWAY!!!!

2011-07-21T09:46:00.000-05:00

Do you like Pampered Chef products???

I do!!! Pampered Chef has so many neat Kitchen gadgets that whenever I go to a party I have a hard time deciding what to buy!

I am currently hosting a Pampered Chef Catalog party and would really appreciate if you order something from the party! My party will be closing out this weekend so I want to offer something extra special to my blog readers if you order from the party!

If you order $40 or more (and have it shipped directly to you) I will put you in a drawing to win a custom shirt from me! I will work with the winner to come up with an applique shirt of your choice (I have HUNDREDS of design options). To order go to my Pampered Chef Consultant's site and you will enter my name as the hostess (Jamie Hardiman). Please make sure you select the shipping option as ship to you directly (unless you are one of my local friends).

Want to see some of my favorite products???

This red Deep Covered Baker is on my list of products to get from this party! My consultant cooks full meals in the microwave with this baker!!! If you purchase this she will send you a PDF cookbook FULL of recipes you can use the baker for!

If you check out my recipes very often you know that I do most of my baking on my Stoneware from Pampered Chef. I LOVE my large bar pan and muffin pans!

I went to a party a few weeks ago and I order this Salad Chopper and I am IN LOVE with it! I have used it for salads and my favorite use is to cut up hot chicken! I boiled some chicken the other day and didn't want to wait for it to cool to cut it up so I used this and it was AWESOME! I was able to cut up a pound of chicken breast into bite size pieces in less than a minute!

From the party I also ordered this measuring cup and it is SOOOOO cool!!!! Measure liquids and solids up to 2 cups. A unique adjustable plunger design cleanly ejects solid ingredients. Includes standard and metric measures.

Now head on over and place your orders, I would REALLY appreciate it!

Kiss Pies

2011-07-19T07:52:00.002-05:00

I got this idea from Pintrest when one of my friends re-pinned it. These Kiss Pies are so easy to make, they only take two ingredients, Hersey Kisses and refrigerated Pie Crust! I tried them with caramel filled hersey kisses and the caramel melted out of the sides a bit. If I made this again I would probably use a different type of hersey kiss. Head over to Picky Palate for the full recipe and tutorial!

Rainbow Popsicle Dessert

2011-07-18T11:25:00.003-05:00

I have no clue where I got this idea, I'm sure it was on another blog somewhere.

Last week Jillian and I took two bags of the frozen popsicles in the little plastic sleeves (the kind you buy unfrozen) and divided them up by color. We took one color at a time, opened them, dumped the popsicles in a bowl, mixed and smashed them up and then layered each section to make this yummy rainbow dessert.

Jillian took it to daycare to share with all her friends. That evening when I picked her up she said "Mommy, all my fwiends loved my dirt", for all of you out there that don't know 3 year old talk that says "Mommy, all my friends loved my dessert!"

I suggest letting the finished dessert sit out for an bit before serving it, the kids ate it when it was about the texture of a sno-cone.

At Home Gel Nails

2011-07-09T11:36:00.007-05:00

I've been seeing stuff online about the new Shellac Nails and had been wanting to try it out. I love to have my nails polished but I hate that after a day or two they are always chipped and looking bad so I thought that Shellac might be the solution!

Back in May I took my mom and Jillian to get nail salon to get pedicures and my mom treated me to a Shellac manicure. I LOVED the results but I just couldn't justify spending $30 every 2-3 weeks to get my nails done. Gelish polish applies on your nails like a regular nail polish but stays on your nails like traditional gel nails do. The gelish nails do not damage your natural nails and soak off easily with acetone.

I set out to research the different products to see if gel nail polish was something I could do at home. I first thought I wanted to buy CND's Shellac system but after doing research I found that Hand & Nail Harmony makes a Gellish system that is a little more affordable, has much more color choices and other at home DIYers liked the Harmony Gelish polish better. Once I decided which polish system I wanted to try I needed to find the best place to buy it all!
The most expensive item that you have to purchase is the UV light. A lot of sites suggest you buy one off ebay but I was really leery because most came from China and I was afraid if I had a problem with it I would have issues returning with a buyer that was out of the country. I decided to spend a few more dollars and purchase from Amazon. In my research I found that you need to purchase a UV light with at least 36 watts and one that has bulbs on top and on the sides. I ended up buying this light, it has a timer on the back for both 2 minutes and 3 minutes.

To do your nails you will need to purchase these Nail Harmony Products, I have purchased some from Amazon and some from Ebay.

Cleanse is used to clean your nails before the base coat.

Base coat.

Top Coat

and the best part, polish! I have the following 5 colors Gossip Girl, It's a Lily, Passion, Good Gossip and Tutti Frutti (the color I am using in this tutorial).

The first step is to prep your nails with the cleanser, it is used to clean the nail as a prep to ensure the nail is free from oil and disinfected.

Once you have used the cleanser it's time for the base coat. The smaller brush ensures the right amount of product is applied to the nail. It is clear and remains clear after curing under UV lamp. I cure my base coat for 2 minutes in the light.

After the base coat cures it's time for the polish. I like to use two coats of polish and after each coat I cure it in the UV light for 2 minutes.

Once you are finished curing the last coat of polish it's time for the top it off sealer! I cure my sealer for 3 minutes under the UV light. Once this last step is finished I use regular Isopropyl Alcohol to remove any residue. If you don't remove the residue your nails will be sticky/tacky. I like to finish my manicure off with some cuticle oil.

I have been VERY happy with everything and my manicures last almost 2 weeks (if I can resist changing colors before then)! There is a small initial investment but it has already paid for itself!

Let me know if you decide to try gel nails at home or if you have any questions at all!

Bath Robe

2011-07-05T10:46:00.000-05:00

Last week while browsing some of my favorite blogs I came across a new tutorial and pattern for a bath robe over at Made and I KNEW I had to make one for Jillian! The pattern was so easy to follow and I LOVE how it turned out. The whole thing was made from a large beach towel and three packages of purple bias tape! Jillian LOVES the robe because it is her favorite color, purple!

Burps!

2011-06-19T21:39:00.000-05:00

I thought I would share with you a few of the burp cloths I made for a customer, I think they turned out pretty cute! I hope baby Zander and his mommy like them. Thanks again Paula for ordering them from me!

SPRINKLE Cookies!

2011-06-15T17:33:00.002-05:00

Sorry it's been so long since I've posted, after the April tornados my work life got NUTS and I really haven't had the time or energy to do much crafting! I have done a few simple things here and there and this is one of them. Jillian and I are home today and tomorrow since she is sick (Michael took Monday and Tuesday) so I have a little free time to share this yummy recipe (if you can even call it a recipe) with you.

SPRINKLE Cookies!

I found this idea on another blog and honestly it's been so long I don't have a clue where I found it!

All you need is Pillsbury Ready to Bake Sugar Cookies and sprinkles!

You basically just roll the cookies around in the sprinkles and then bake them according to the package directions. We like the little multicolored "ball" sprinkles best.

The cookies turn out so good, I PROMISE you won't be able to eat just one!

Do you use Swagbucks?!?!?

2011-05-26T21:56:00.000-05:00

I was at a wonderful coupon class tonight taught by Jennifer from The Coupon Centsation and the topic of Swagbucks came up. Several people in the class had either never heard of swagbucks or didn't know how to use them so I told Jennifer I would share the information, I hope this is helpful!

Swagbucks.com is an online portal dedicated to helping you earn digital dollars called "Swag Bucks", which can be redeemed for exclusive Swagbucks.com merchandise. Since I started using Swag Bucks I have made over $150 in Amazon gift cards!!! You redeem your bucks for so many different things but I found giftcards to be the best option for me!

When you sign up for Swag Bucks I think installing the search tool on your task bar is the best way to earn the most bucks. You will use their search engine for all of your online searches, I never use Google anymore! Swag Bucks will randomly award you your "Bucks" for different searches. Sometimes you won't get any bucks and other times you might get 10! The 2nd way I earn my Swag Bucks is by doing surveys. On the main Swagbuck site there are NUMEROUS surveys posted daily and some can earn you up to 200 Swagbucks. One $5 Amazon gift card only costs 500 Swagbucks so you can see how you can EASILY earn big money!

I hope this helps answer some of your questions about SwagBucks and how to use them. If you have any questions about them let me know, I'll help you as best as I can! Now head over to SwagBucks and sign up!

Mexican Dorito Casserole

2011-05-17T07:00:00.000-05:00

Ready for a quick, easy, super yummy casserole recipe???

I found this over at Jam Hands but I noticed she found the recipe from another blogger, who found it from another blogger so I really don't know whose recipe it is but I can tell you one thing it is VERY good!

Mexican Dorito Casserole

Serves 4-6

2 c. shredded cooked chicken
1 c. shredded cheese
1 can cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup sour cream
1 can Ro-tel tomatoes (canned tomatoes with jalepenos-mild)
1/2 packet taco seasoning (or more- to taste)
Bag of doritos
1. Pre-heat oven to 350-f degrees.

2. In a mixing bowl, combine all ingredients except doritos.

3. In a greased 2 qt baking dish, put a layer of crushed doritos (about 2 cups), then a layer of the chicken mixture. Repeat once more, ending with a layer of chicken mixture. Top with more shredded cheese, cover, and bake for 30-35 minutes, till bubbling hot

Enjoy!

Mountain Dew Voltage Cake

2011-05-15T20:35:00.000-05:00

Have you tried Mountain Dew's new flavors? One of our favorites is Mountain Dew Voltage (it's a raspberry citrus flavor) and it comes in diet so we don't feel guilty at all drinking it! This weekend I decided to experiment and make a Mountain Dew Voltage Cake and it turned out REALLY good!

The bad news is that Mountain Dew was having a contest to pick their new flavor and our favorite, Voltage, just lost to Supernova so I don't think we will be able to find Voltage for much longer. Next time I make a cake I'll have to try a Supernova cake!

I started by preheating the oven to 350.

Then I mixed a box of vanilla cake mix with one can of Diet Mountain Dew Voltage, just the power from the mix and the soda nothing else!

I spread the mixture into a greased 9x13 pan.

The cake took about 30 minutes to bake.

Once the cake was cooled it was time to ice it!

I mixed 4 cups of powered sugar with 5 tablespoons of Diet Mountain Dew Voltage.

I poured the icing mixture over the cake and then I used some pink and blue jell icings to decorate the top a bit.

The cake turned out very tasty and we all three enjoyed it!

How You Can Help

2011-05-03T14:19:00.000-05:00

Thank you to everyone that sent their prayers our way, North Alabama is slowly on the mend. The power at our home came back on yesterday (my birthday!) and as of right now 70% of our county has power. Even though the power is coming back there is still a lot to be done. There are so many people that have lost everything.

Please, please, please take a minute to visit The Pioneer Woman's website and leave a comment, she will donate a quarter ($.25) for every entry/comment that’s left there this week, to an organization that will directly benefit victims of the recent tornadoes in the South.

Ree is also going to pick 4 four (4) winners and will give $500 donations to the charity of the winners’ choice!

You can also help by texting "REDCROSS" to 90999. By texting the Red cross you will donate $10.00 to the Red Cross and the Alabama Relief Efforts.

***photo credit to Eric Schultz, The Huntsville Times and al.com .

say a prayer

2011-04-30T10:35:00.001-05:00

I am posting this from the car on my cell so ignore any mistakes! for those that dont know I live in huntsville, alabama and large portions of our state were damaged by tornados wednesday. currently there are 400,000 households without power and wont have it until tuesday at the earliest. I have friends and customer (I work in insurance) that have lost everything, we were blessed. please take a minute and pray for our state, we need it! The red cross is also taking donations for the state. we are headed to nashville for the weekend, we need hot showers!

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New Trampoline

2011-04-25T07:42:00.001-05:00

Michael's company set up a new system for their safety bonus and instead of giving them money they started giving them points, each point equals $1 towards a purchase at Walmart.com, Amazon or Bass Pro Shop. He got his first points a few weeks ago and it was just enough to buy Jillian a trampoline! Jilly's new daycare has a trampoline and she LOVES it so we knew she would like to have one in her own backyard. I think we made a good decision, she wants to bounce all the time now!

Jellybean Pizza

2011-04-24T11:50:00.000-05:00

Happy Easter everyone! I hope everyone is having a blessed day and enjoying some family time. After we hunted eggs this morning Jillian and I decided to make up a Jellybean Pizza! Extra Frosting Please posted this recipe on Wildflower & Whimsy's Sew Crafty Saturday and we had to make it!

Head over here to get Extra Frosting Please's recipe for the crust, I added a little extra flour to mine. I didn't have a pizza pan so I used a square metal pan, I lined it in foil so I could just pull it out when it was done.

I baked mine for about 12 minutes.

Once the cookie cooled I pulled the whole thing out of the pan and put it on a platter.

I didn't have any cream cheese so I just used some Creamy Vanilla icing I had.

We sprinkled some purple sugar on top of the icing.

Then it was time for the Jellybeans!

Jillian LOVED this neat recipe and we had fun making it!

Custom from Spring Fling Giveaway

2011-04-23T20:58:00.000-05:00

Kristen from Our Crazy Bunch was the winner of my Spring Fling Giveaway. I mailed Kristen and her son the shirt Monday (I hope she has it by now) but wanted to share pictures of her prize with you!

Stuff We've Bought - Part 1

2011-04-21T08:56:00.001-05:00

I know I love it when my favorite bloggers post about items they purchase and either love it or hate it so I've decided to start sharing some of our purchases with you! I hope my posts help you in some way!

Little Kids brand Big Bubble Friends Lion

This bubble maker is great. I bought it back in the fall at Kmart during a big clearance event and only paid $2.00 so I wasn't too sure if was going to be a good item. I love finding great clearance deals and stashing them away for gifts or just because we need something fun to do. Last weekend Jillian and I busted this lion out of the box and she had a BLAST! I found it on Amazon for $16.99 and I really think it's worth the full price. Jillian chased bubbles in the backyard until she was WORN OUT! I'm going to keep my eyes open for another deal on one and I will probably get it to donate to Jillian's daycare.

Pantene Curly Hair Series

I have naturally VERY curly hair and I am always looking for just the right product. It seems like once I've used something for a few years my hair just gets tired of that product and doesn't curl good anymore. When my mom lived in town she would pick up different products for me at the beauty supply for awesome deals but now that I'm on my own with no good deals I decided to try out Pantene's new Curly Hair Series. So far I have tried the Shampoo, Curl Shaping Gel, Curl Enhancing Spray Gel and the Curl Defining Mousse and I really like them all!

*all opinions are mine, this is not a sponsored post

Wildflowers & Whimsy: Skye Reve Fabrics Giveaway

2011-04-20T18:42:00.000-05:00

Hey everyone! I just wanted to pop in real quick and encourage you all to head over to Wildflowers and Whimsy and check out this wonderful giveaway!

I would LOVE to win this Sweet Nothings bundle from SkyeReve Fabrics and if I don't win it I want one of you to!

Go check it out: Wildflowers & Whimsy: Skye Reve Fabrics Giveaway

Margarita Cupcakes

2011-04-19T06:48:00.001-05:00

This weekend we spent some time at Michael's parents house and Saturday night Jillian and I decided we needed to make some cupcakes. My mother-in-law keeps a stocked pantry so we had everything we needed to make Margarita Cupcakes! I found this yummy recipe on Cupcake Project, check it out!

I followed the recipe for the cupcakes exactly like Stef posted but by the time we finished dinner we were tired and I wasn't in the mood to mix up the icing. Luckly Pat had some pre-made Duncan Hines Vanilla frosting and I squeezed the juice of one lime and mixed it into the icing.

We all enjoyed the cupcakes very much and I look forward to trying more recipes from Cupcake Project!

Easter Egg Time!

2011-04-17T19:08:00.001-05:00

This weekend after we got home from the lake we colored Easter eggs. This was the first year that Jillian was able to really take part in the process and we all had fun! I love it when we have a project that all three of us get to work on together.

We used several different PAAS decorating supplies, if you haven't tried the Color Snap sticks you need to pick some up before you color your Easter eggs this year they were SOOOO neat! The sticks don't last for too long but they were really neat and all three of us LOVED using them. We picked everything up at Walmart and I think the sticks were only $1.00.

Spring Is Here at Pier 1

2011-04-17T09:01:00.001-05:00

This post brought to you by Pier 1. All opinions are 100% mine.

Spring has finally sprung here and I have been looking for some affordable ways to update our back porch for spring and summer. One of my favorite places to look for accessories and furnishings is Pier 1 , since my birthday is coming up (May 2) I've been working on my wish list!

We currently have a wrought iron patio set that a few years ago I painted chocolate brown and I really want to get some new bright accessories to liven up our outdoor space. When I was browsing Pier 1 online I found their Floral Market Umbrellas and Whimsical Garden Chair Cushions and I KNEW they had to be mine!

Another item I would LOVE to get is an Outdoor Papasan Chair and Whimsical Garden Cushion. The Papasan chair would fit perfectly in the corner of our deck and would be a great comfortable spot after a long day at work! What is awesome about the Papasan chair is it would also work great inside the house, all I would have to do is change the cushion out.

While browsing the Pier 1 website I fell in love with some of the new Papasan items, check out this Outdoor Swingasan. I wish I had a good spot for the Swingasan because it would TOTALLY be mine if we did!

To brighten up the table top I really want to get a few of the outdoor oil burners, the Floral Stripes outdoor dinnerware and some of the platters and bowls!

I am so in love with all the bright colors and fun spring stuff I can't wait to get my hands on some of it!

Attention family: I would like Pier 1 gift cards for my birthday!

Make sure you also check out the Pier 1 Tweetups!

Chicken Chimichangas

2011-04-12T16:18:00.000-05:00

The same day I made the Buffalo Chicken Cheese Dip I also made Chicken Chimichangas. Chicken Chimichangas are one of my favorite meals and my mom used to make them for us all the time.

I used rotisserie chicken and seasoned it to my liking with taco seasoning.

The first step is to put a spoonful of refried beans on your flour tortilla.

Then pile on some Chicken then shredded cheese (I used Mexican Blend).

Next fold in two sides.

Then the other two sides to create a closed up burrito.

Fry the Chimichangas in oil over medium heat. I place mine fold side down first.

Once they are browned turn them over and fry the other side.

Top them with your favorite salsa and some sour cream!

Dance Pictures

2011-04-11T06:40:00.000-05:00

The day the photographer came to dance class to take pictures Jillian was in a BAD mood and I KNOW those pictures are not going to turn out great. We had wonderful weather this weekend so we decided to take some dance pictures of our own. She wasn't in the best picture mood but I still think they turned out great.

Buffalo Chicken Dip

2011-04-10T09:21:00.000-05:00

Have you seen Velveeta's new Spicy Buffalo Cheese? I spotted it when we went to the grocery store last week and decided to try it out. If you decide to pick some up there is a coupon out right now for $1 off!

There are recipes on the inside of the box for a few different things, I decided to try the Buffalo Chicken Dip. We don't like celery so we left that off. For the shredded cooked chicken I just used a whole rotisserie I had bought a publix. I used some of the chicken for this and the rest for chicken chimichangas (I will be sharing those later this week)!

1 lb. (16 oz.) VELVEETA Spicy Buffalo Pasteurized Prepared Cheese Product, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1/4 cup Sour Cream

1 cup shredded cooked chicken breast

1 stalk celery, chopped

MICROWAVE first 3 ingredients in large microwaveable bowl on HIGH 3 min. or until VELVEETA is completely melted, stirring after 1-1/2 min.

STIR in remaining ingredient.

After I mixed this all up and melted it I decided that it needed a little more chicken so I added a little more. One thing that happened was after it was out of the microwave just a few minutes it REALLY thickened up (the chips would break when we would try and dip) so if I made this again I would probably add a little milk to thin it up some. Michael and I both decided this really doesn't taste like Buffalo dip, just a spicy cheese but it was pretty good.

Tags: Velveeta, Kraft Foods

Spring Pictures

2011-04-09T19:19:00.000-05:00

Michael drives past this field everyday on his way to work and has been telling me about how pretty it was. Today we decided to load up and head over to Decatur to take some pictures in the field. Jillian was more interested in picking the flowers than taking pictures so this wasn't our best photo shoot. I think the pictures turned out pretty cute! Later this week I will share the rest of our photo shoot weekend, we also took pictures of Jillian in her dance costumes at a few different locations in Decatur.

Will you do me a favor????

2011-04-08T07:51:00.002-05:00

Head over to facebook and like the Rocket City Mom fan page then post on the wall saying you were referred by The Coupon Centsation fan page!!! One of my friends, Jennifer, is trying to win tickets to take her kids to see Disney Live tomorrow and this is a way that I can help them. I would REALLY appreicate it if you took the time to do this, her twins would LOVE to see Mickey!

Cookies 'N' Creme Brownies

2011-04-06T21:08:00.000-05:00

Sorry I haven't been around much this week. I haven't felt great, been CRAZY busy at work and I've been working on my first blanket and it's a LONG process. I can't wait to share the blanket I'm making for Jillian (hopefully it turns out cute), I've wanted to make her one since she was born but haven't been confident enough in my sewing skills until now to try. Hopefully I'll have it done in the next week or so.

Are you guys ready to try out my latest recipe?!?!?

Want a new way to doctor up your favorite brownies??? Try my SUPER yummy, SUPER easy

Cookies 'N' Creme Brownie recipe!

I started out with a basic box of Duncan Hines Chewy Fudge brownies, I made the box according to the instructions on the the package.

Once mixed up I spread half the browning mixture into a greased 8x11 pan.

Then I took 3 Hershey's Cookies 'n' Creme bars (they are on sale this week at CVS, buy 2 get 1 free) and placed them over the brownie mixture. I had to trim the edges off to get them to fit.

Then spread the remaining brownie mixture over the chocolate bars.

I then crushed the pieces I had to trim over the top of the brownies.

I baked my brownies for about 30-32 minutes.

They turned out SOOOOO yummy, I hope you enjoy them!

Tags: Duncan Hines, Hershey's

Spring Fling Giveaway Final Day!

2011-04-02T04:51:00.001-05:00

So have any of my wonderful readers won anything???

Make sure you check out today's final giveaways!

Today head over to My Girlish Whims and enter to win a gift certificate!

Then go over to Extra Ordinary Bree and enter to win a Pettiskirt!

Spring Fling Giveaway Day 13

2011-04-01T04:46:00.003-05:00

Today you will need to hop on over to Bare Feet On The Dashboard to enter to win Becca's giveaway.

Then head over to By the Bluegrass to check out Sena's Giveaway!

Stuffed Hot Dogs

2011-03-31T07:11:00.000-05:00

Last week when trying to come up with something different for dinner I decided to make Mrs. Happy Homemaker's Stuffed Hot Dogs.

They turned out super yummy and I'm sure we will have them again soon!

Stuffed Hot Dogs

•1 cup shredded Cheddar Cheese
•1/2 cup crushed potato chips or corn chips
•1/2 onion, diced small
•4 tablespoons ketchup
•1 tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
•10 beef hot dog weiners, split lenthwise

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Mix cheese, crushed up chips, diced onion, ketchup & Worcestershire sauce. Stuff the mixture into each of the split hot dogs.
Place a cookie sheet & bake for 20 minutes

Spring Fling Giveaway Day 12 - MY WINNER ANNOUNCED!

2011-03-31T04:42:00.004-05:00

Are you excited to hear who won my giveaway???

Congratulations commenter #23, Our Crazy Bunch!

Today you need to head over to Strokes Of Magic and enter to win Renee's giveaway.

Then head over to Puddle Jumper Creations and enter to win Susie's giveaway.

Spring Fling Giveaway Day 11

2011-03-30T04:35:00.001-05:00

Today head over to B Inspired Mama and enter Kristina's giveaway for a $30 gift certificate!

Then head over to Dew This and enter Delina's giveaway to win a set of decorative tiles!

A little Spring, A little Minnie

2011-03-29T08:52:00.005-05:00

A few weeks ago I picked up some plain tshirts really cheap at Gymboree with plans to applique on them. Saturday Jillian and I hit Hancock fabric to look for some fabric to go with them. I knew I wanted to use one of them to make an Easter shirt and skirt and I wanted to find something cute to go with the other shirt so I could make a Minnie Mouse shirt for our upcoming trip to Disney World (shhh.... Jillian doesn't know about it, we will be going in November).

Here is what I came up with.

To make this shirt I used Made's Market Skirt tutorial and the applique design is by Planet Applique. I am thinking about adding some light blue (it's hard to see in the picture but the leaves are blue and green) pockets to the front of the skirt but I'm afraid to mess it up!

For the Minnie Mouse outfit I wanted something "different" so I didn't go for the typical red, white and black, I think Jillian might wear this one of the days we visit Epcot. For the skirt I used Made's Circle Skirt tutorial and I got the applique design from Bows and Clothes.

Don't forget, you still have two days left to enter my giveaway!!!! Check it out!

Spring Fling Giveaway Day 10

2011-03-29T04:07:00.002-05:00

Don't forget to check out my giveaway from yesterday, you have until Wednesday evening to enter!

Today you need to head over to Girl Boy Girl Inspired and enter to win a glass pendant necklace!

Then head over to Ashley Creations and enter to win a loopy bow!

Hoo Are You Tuesday

2011-03-29T03:52:00.002-05:00

1. What is your favorite magazine?

That really depends on the mood I am in but when my Family Fun magazine comes in I always sit right down and read the whole thing!

2. What color are your eyes?

Brown

3. Do you go to the dentist on a regular 6 month schedule, or do you put it off?

I HATE going to the dentist and I put it off. I am actually WAY over due to go now!

4. Do you use anything to make your house smell good?

I am a Yankee Candle girl! I love my house to smell like their Sugar Cookie candle!

5. Do you have any pets?

Yep! We have a dog, Lexi, she is a 5 year old yorkie, daschund, chihuahua mix. Two cats that are almost two, Ariel and Triton, we just adopted them in November. We also have 3 aquiriums (1 salt water, 2 fresh water).

Now head over to Night Owl Crafting and get to know everyone else!

Have you entered my giveaway? It's only open until tomorrow night. Check it out!

Spring Fling Giveaway Day 9 - MY GIVEAWAY DAY!!!!!!!

2011-03-28T04:53:00.002-05:00

Today is finally the day you have all been waiting for, it's time to enter my giveaway!!!!

Do you want to win a customed appliqued shirt???? I will work with the winner to choose a shirt color from my stash and special fabric for their initial shirt!

The first thing you need to do in order to enter my giveaway is become a follower of my blog, once you have done that please leave me a comment and that will be your first chance.

You will get a second chance to enter by following my giveaway partner Jayna's blog, Rock N Regalia. Once you follow her blog come back here and leave me a second comment letting me know.

Your third and final way to win a shirt is to become a follower of Wildflowers & Whimsy! April of Wildflowers & Whimsy is the wonderful hostess of this wonderful Spring Fling Giveaway! Once you become the follower over there come back here and leave me a third comment letting me know!

Like all the other giveaways mine will be open for 3 days so on Thursday make sure to check back here to see who won!

Now, it's time for you to head over to Rock N Regalia and enter to win a beautiful necklace!

Faux Stained Glass

2011-03-27T18:36:00.001-05:00

I got this idea from All Thumbs Crafts and as soon as I saw it I KNEW I had to try it out! I've had a package of Alcohol inks for probably over a year and its just sat on my shelf. I decided to try this out on a plain vase I had around the house. Also needed for this project is a can of canned air.

I started out by dropping a few drops of the lightest color ink, i dropped some on the side too.

Then spray away with your air!

I followed my yellow with pink and then teal.

I kept working around the vase until all the blank areas were colored! Some of the colors mixed to make new colors, I LOVE how it turned out. It was REALLY rainy this weekend but next time the sun is out I'll take some better pictures outside to show it off better!

Spring Fling Giveaway Day 8

2011-03-27T06:43:00.002-05:00

Can you believe there have been a week of giveaways so far? Have any of my readers won anything???

Today you need to head over to Wildflowers & Whimsy to visit April and enter to win this precious dress!

Once you've entered April's giveaway jump over to A Jennuine Life so enter Jenn's giveaway for this adorable every occasion dress.

Too Short Jeans Into Shorts!

2011-03-26T16:25:00.000-05:00

My tall skinny girl is constantly growing out of her jeans in the length but they still fit fine in the waist. She can actually still wear 18-24 month in the waist but her 4T jeans are too short! When shopping for some spring clothes for her I noticed that there are TONS of cute cuffed looks this year and figured instead of buying her shorts I can just turn the jeans into cuffed shorts!

I marked right above her knees.

Then cut one side off.

Then folded the cut side over the uncut side and matched them up.

Then cut the 2nd side off.

I folded both sides over about an inch.

Then folded them a 2nd time.

The look great and saved us money!

Spring Fling Giveaway Day 7

2011-03-26T06:26:00.000-05:00

Today is day 7 of the giveaway, can you believe there are still 7 more days of awesome giveaways???

Today Bethany over at Sweet Bee Buzzings is giving away a beautiful purse, go check it out!

Then Melanie over at Lucky 7 Design is giving away a gift basket with 12 handmade items PLUS vintage earrings and lace!

Spring Fling Giveaway Day 6

2011-03-25T06:20:00.001-05:00

I hope you all are having as much fun with this as I am!

Today you need to check out Stephanie's blog, Luxe Boulevard, and enter to win her awesome Lady Beachy Keen Headband.

Then head over to Nat Mac's Knick Knacks and enter to win a cleaning apron and box of magic erasers!

Before I blogged... my applique work

2011-03-24T07:10:00.000-05:00

I was going through some files on my computer tonight and found a folder with pictures of some of the appliqued clothes I have done in the past and thought you might be interested in seeing some of my favorites.

Spring Fling Giveaway Day 5

2011-03-24T06:10:00.001-05:00

Are you having fun yet? Have you found some awesome blogs to start following?

Today you are in for a treat. Normally there are two giveaways each day but today there are three!

First stop on the giveaway train is Lelani's blog, To Sew With Love! Lelani is giving away a diaper and wipes case, owl plush and a special surprise!

The second stop on the giveaway train is Candace's blog, Sweet Nothings. She is giving away a lovely yellow burlap flower.

The third and final stop on today's giveaway train is Lauren's blog, The Simple Sussie. Lauren is giving away a pretty bloom necklace.

Welcome Pillsbury Visitors!

2011-03-23T15:13:00.000-05:00

I wanted to take a minute to welcome all my visitors that have found me from Pillsbury's facebook page, I am so excited they shared my Mini Monkey Bread post with you!

I hope you enjoy my blog and visit again to check out my neat projects, designs and recipes.

I also encourage you to check out the giveaway I am a part of, Wildflowers and Whimsy's Spring Fling Giveaway.

Each day two wonderful bloggers will be giving away wonderful gifts to their readers and visitors, check back here on March 28 and I will be giving away a custom appliqued shirt!

Spring Fling Giveaway Day 4

2011-03-23T06:52:00.000-05:00

So, have any of my readers won anything yet??? Please let me know if you do so I can't be excited with you!

Do you have a sweet little girl that needs some precious little hair accessories??? If so today is the day of giveaways for you!

The first giveaway is a spring bouquet of hair accessories! Head over to Jennifer's blog, My Mommy Can, and enter to win.

Once you've entered there head over to Momma's Kinda Crafty and check out the beautiful headband and interchangeable crochet flowers that Joy is giving away.

Don't forget to tell our your friends about these wonderful giveaways!

Hoo Are you Tuesday

2011-03-22T19:15:00.000-05:00

Here are this week's questions!

1. Have you ever had a professional massage before?
Yes, and it was wonderful! I wish they weren't so pricey, I would get them every week!

2. When drinking bottled water do you have a preference on which brand you drink?
I don't drink bottled water, filtered from the refrigerator is just fine with me!

3. What is your favorite kind of soup?
My mom's Southwestern Chicken Corn Chowder

4. Do you have a preference on which Kleenex brand you use?
Nope, whatever is on sale.

5. What is your favorite breakfast food?
I'm not a big breakfast person but my favorite is probably pancakes.
Head over To Night Owl Crafting and check out the other Hoo Are You posts!

Spring Fling Giveaway Day 3

2011-03-22T06:00:00.001-05:00

WooHoo! Another day of awesome giveaways!

Today you need to go visit Anna at Ask Anna and enter to win this BEAUTIFUL necklace!

Once you've entered for the necklace hop over to While He was Napping and check out this PRECIOUS apron that Krista is giving away!

Painted T-Shirt with Freezer Paper Stencil

2011-03-21T07:45:00.001-05:00

I've seen tutorials all over the web for painting shirts using freezer paper stencils and of course I had to try it out myself! I am a perfectionist when it comes to my crafts and I see the flaws in this but I still think it turned out pretty cute. I think part of the problem is I wasn't patient enough and tried to speed up the process and I kept messing up the paint.

I used my cricut to cut out a design I liked for my stencil. I used my Forever Young cartridge and picked out a cute purse design, I didn't want to do anything too complicated for my first shirt.

I placed the freezer paper on my cricut carrier sheet and cut away!

Before I ironed the freezer paper design to the front of the shirt I ironed a piece to the inside to keep my shirt more stable.

Then I placed the purse design how I liked it and ironed it down. I used a low heat setting with no steam to iron it down.

Now it's time to paint! I used Tulip Soft Fabric Paint that I bought at Joann's and a foam brush.

I painted two layers and then removed the freezer paper when the last layer was still a little wet.

After the paint is totally dry you can add other details. I found that if I tried to iron on more freezer paper on top of what I already painted it messed it up so I just held my flower sencil in place while I painted the purple flower.

I wasn't happy with the lines on the flower, maybe I should have used a small brush to go back and make them straigter but I decided to use hot fix crystals to add a "pop" to the design and cover the lines.

I have this hot fix applicator and I buy most my crystals at hobby lobby, michaels or joanna's (where ever I have a coupon or they are on sale).

I just created a pattern I liked with different sized crystals and set them down.

I'm pretty happy with how it turned out and Jillian loves it!

Spring Fling Giveaway Day 2

2011-03-21T07:39:00.001-05:00

Today you need to head over to Suze's blog, Time Well Spent, and enter for a chance to win an adorable tutu and bows.

Then swing on over to A Very Dandoislion Life and check out what Shawna is giving away.

Spring Fling Giveaway Day 1

2011-03-20T07:17:00.003-05:00

I don't know about you but I am so excited that today is finally the first day of giveaways! We are all so thankful for April over at Wildflowers and Whimsy for organizing this wonderful event and I can't wait to see who wins these wonderful prizes each day! Make sure you tell all your friends about these wonderful giveaways, this is such an awesome thing!

Today you need to head over to A Crafty Southern Chick to check out these neat Rosette Earrings and Necklace that Leighann is giving away!

Once you've visited A Crafty Southern Chick you need to head over to Increasingly Domestic and enter Amy's giveaway to win a rice neck heating pad and a Burt's Bees polka-dot perfect mani-pedi kit!

See you tomorrow for another great set of giveaways!

Mini Monkey Bread

2011-03-19T10:41:00.001-05:00

One of my co-workers, Jessica, made this recipe last week and brought a piece to the office for me to try. It was wonderful and I immediately asked her to share the recipe with me so that Jillian and I could make it this weekend! I bought enough to double the recipe so that Michael can take some to his co-workers in the morning but I'm not sure Jillian is going to let him leave the house with them, she has already had 3 servings!

The recipe is from Pillsbury and I found it on their website.

Mini Monkey Bread

1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 cup granulated sugar

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

2 cans (7.5 oz each) Pillsbury® refrigerated biscuits

Grease or spray 12 regular-size muffin cups. Mix butter and brown sugar; spoon 1 tablespoon mixture into each muffin cup.

(my assistant Jillian splashed the butter around a little too much)

Mix granulated sugar and cinnamon in 1-gallon bag (I was out of gallon bags to I used a quart and mixed half at a time).

Separate dough into 20 biscuits; cut each in 6 pieces. I wasn't too exact with this, some I only cut into 4 pieces.

Add pieces to the bag and shake to coat. Place 10 pieces in each muffin cup.

(for anyone that doesn't have Pampered Chef stoneware my pan is not dirty, it's "seasoned" and is clean)

After this step I added to the recipe a little. When Jessica made it she said she would have liked it a little better if the carmel from the bottom was on the other side too. I mixed up half a cup of melted butter with 1/4 a cup of brown sugar and spooned it over the top of the biscuits.

Bake at 350°F for 12 to 15 minutes or until golden brown.

Cool 1 minute; turn upside down (I placed foil over the pan and flipped it over onto the foil so I didn't have a big mess or rolls flying around). Serve warm.

Don't forget to head over to Wildflowers and Whimsy and keep up with all the awesome giveaway's going on for Spring Fling! I would LOVE it if some of my readers won some of the AWESOME 29 prizes. Be sure to check back here on March 28 for my giveaway!

Dollar Tree Easter Crafts!

2011-03-16T18:59:00.002-05:00

The Dollar Tree is one of my favorite stores, what other place can you leave with a bag full of stuff for only $10?

Yesterday I ran in to grab a few things and I spotted these cute Easter craft kits and I knew Jillian and I would enjoy making them. Jilly is really into using her glue sticks right now so this is the perfect craft for us!

The kit comes with everything you need except the glue.

There are step by step instructions on the package.

Jillian had blast gluing everything down and now we have cute Easter decorations on the refrigerator and hanging on our doors!

Hoo Are you?

2011-03-15T15:43:00.000-05:00

I found this neat weekly "Hoo Are You" post on Night Owl Crafting and thought I would participate!

Each week she posts a different set of questions so readers can get to know each blogger better.

Here are this week's questions!
1. What are a couple of your favorite green foods?

This is a tough one..... after years of hating it I now like salad (I know mom, shocks you doesn't it???). I also like avocados but since I got pregnant with Jillian they make my tongue swell.

2. Do you decorate for St. Patrick's Day?

I don't do much St. Patrick's Day decorating but I did make a cute wreath this year, check it out here. It doesn't SCREAM St. Patrick's Day but it's green!

3. Do you have Irish in you?

Honestly, I have no clue!

4. Do you celebrate St. Patrick's Day?

We all wear something green and I try and do something fun for Jillian but we don't do anything over the top for St. Patrick's Day. I'm sad to say I didn't even make Jillian a shirt, she'll have to wear her Old Navy St. Patrick's Day shirt from last year.

5.Use one word that represents each letter in the word LUCK in your life!

L - Love

U - Understanding

C - Crafty

K - Klutz

Tie-Dye with Sharpies!

2011-03-13T17:39:00.001-05:00

I found a similar tutorial online last week and for the life of me I can't find the link again! If you google Tie-Dye with sharpies there are tons of different posts and website that give ideas and instruction, this is our take on it! **edit 3/15, I came accross the link again! I got the idea from Sun Scholars.

This was a great project to do with Jillian, she enjoyed coloring in the sections and picking out what colors went where. Next time we try this we will buy regular size sharpies and not use the thin ones, they made our job a lot harder.

Supplies

Start by taking sections of the fabric and twisting them. Once they are twisted tight you will rubber band them. You will do this is sections all over the shirt, don't forget the back and sleeves! We used hairbands since that is all we had on hand. I found the little clear bands of Jillian's worked better than my hairbands.

After all your twists are made it's time to start coloring! Color the different sections however you want.

After you have colored in everything it's magic time!

I filled a small bowl with rubbing alcohol and dipped each "twist" into the alcohol.

Then we hung the t-shirt outside for several hours to dry.

Once it's dry it's time to undo the twists and see your work.

I wanted more color to the shirt and a few more tie-dye sections so I twisted and colored again.

Our final shirt, front:

Back:

Jillian can't wait to wear it to school to show her friends!

Spring Fling Giveaway!

2011-03-11T08:37:00.001-06:00

I am so excited to be a part of April at Wildflowers & Whimsy's Spring Fling Giveaway!

Today April posted a sneak peak on her blog with all the giveaways, check it out! If you want to see more of any of the items check out the individual blogs!

Are you ready to see what I will be giving away on March 28?????

Are you sure you are ready?????

Here is a sneak peak:

Do you know what it is????

Are you sure?

No, it can't be that.

Should I tell you?

Maybe I should wait.

You don't really want to know do you?

Take one guess.

Well, if you guessed a custom applique shirt you guessed right!

The winner of my giveaway will get a shirt customized with the letter of their choice. T-Shirt color and brand will be based on my supply and I will work with the winner to select a fabric of their liking. The applique design is from Planet Applique.

Now go check out all the other giveaways! Each day from March 20 - April 2 I will feature the items that are being given away that day and encourage you to visit the other blogs and check them out!

See you back here on March 28 for my awesome giveaway!

Funny Pie

2011-03-10T20:19:00.000-06:00

Funny Pie is another one of my grandma Sjoholm's recipes and another family favorite! Nothing is better than an slice of Funny Pie and a scoop of vanilla ice cream!

Preheat the oven to 350, butter the bottom and sides of a pie dish

Ingredients

1 stick of melted butter

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup flour

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 tablespoons cocoa

Mix all the ingredients in a mixing bowl until smooth.

Pour mixture into your pie dish

Bake for for 25-30 minutes. You want your funny pie to be pretty firm and not gooey. When you eat the pie it will be chewy and oh so yummy! Don't forget to serve it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream!

Easter Egg Wreath

2011-03-07T19:29:00.002-06:00

I had an idea to make a wreath with plastic eggs and after I googled it I found several ideas I like but I really liked this blog post with a tutorial and thought I would give it a try! I hope you like my wreath and it inspires you to make one!

I started out by cutting a cardboard ring to be the base of my wreath.

I purchased my eggs at the dollar tree, I ended up using 4 packs of 18.

I just glued the eggs on in the pattern I liked.

After I glued all my eggs in place it was time to add the Easter grass! I took a clump of grass and put hot glue on the end and stuck it into place with a pencil. This step was pretty messy. After I would do some I would trim the grass and use it again until I filled all my holes. I also glued grass around the outside of the wreath where the cardboard would show

After I had all the grass in place and trimmed I started on my bow.

I'm not 100% sure I like this bow, what do you think? I'm thinking I might get some different ribbon that isn't as transparent and make another. Also, do you think it's too big????

I used my handy Bowdabra to make the bow (do you like my pajama pants?).

Now it's time to hand the wreath! I just used a piece of the same ribbon I used to make the bow and tied a knot in the back.

Then I hot glued the bow onto the front corner of the wreath..... be honest, what do you think of the bow?

And now for the final product!

Updated 3/10 - I decided to change the bow out, what do you think of the new one???

Fun at the Circus

2011-03-07T07:01:00.000-06:00

We had a blast at the circus and thought you might like to see some of our pictures!

Before the show we were able to go down on the floor for the all access pre-show, Jillian really enjoyed it. Here she is getting a temporary tattoo from one of the acrobats.

She loves the clown nose and has already worn it several times.

Here we were watching some of the clowns toss stuff in the air and catch it with wires, she was really into this.

There were so many people around watching the elephants painting so Jillian had to get on Michael's shoulders to be able to see.

She wanted to go take a picture with the clown but when we got up close she froze and cut her eyes at him!

Before we went to our seats we let her pick out a snack and of course she chose cotton candy and lemonade.

At intermission Jillian wanted a snow cone and she let daddy try it while she finished off her cotton candy.

How to make a Fabric Yo-Yo Headband

2011-03-06T18:17:00.001-06:00

I want to start off by saying this is NOT my original idea, I have seen tutorials all over the web with instructions for making fabric yo-yos, this is just my spin on them!

KojoDesigns is hosting a Spring Destash party and I thought this would be a great way to join! I had some scraps of fabric left from Jillian's circus dress and decided to make a quick cute headband for Jillian to wear with her dress today to the circus.

I buy my plain headbands at Target, Walmart or Dollar Tree.... wherever I can find them in the colors I want or cheapest! Often I cover the headband with ribbon but I liked the color of this headband so I left it alone.

Start by picking two coordinating fabrics and cutting out two circles, one larger than the other. When doing this I just pick different plates or bowls that I like the size of and trace them.

Then you start with the right side of the fabric facing down and you fold edge of the fabric in to creating a hem. You will stitch all the way around the circle close to the top of the fold, make sure you tie a knot in the end of the thread at the beginning of your stitch.

Once you have stitched around the entire circle you will pull the thread to gather the fabric, you can gather as loose or as tight as you want.

Proceed to do the same thing with your second circle.

Once both yo-yos are made it's time to assemble the headband!

I hot glued both of them together then embellished the top with buttons. When making these I just search my scrapbook and sewing stashes to come up with cute things that match the outfit or headband. Once everything is glued together you just hot glue the whole thing to the headband!

This is a great way to coordinate your child's accessories with their outfits!

Circus Tent

2011-03-05T20:35:00.001-06:00

I decided to go ahead and add a circus tent to the front of Jillian's dress, I cant wait to share pictures from the circus tomorrow!

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New Blog Design

2011-03-04T11:41:00.000-06:00

I've wanted to purchase a cute blog design template for awhile but didn't want to break the bank. I've been searching for just the right one and I just came across Sprinkled With Magic and her etsy shop and I fell in LOVE with the designs. I had such a hard time picking the design I wanted!

I just purchased my design and she is customizing it now, I can't wait to get it up on the blog!

Carnival Purchases

2011-03-03T08:05:00.001-06:00

I know, you are probably still laughing at me for planning Jillian's birthday party this far in advance but now I have another reason for you to laugh at me...... I've started buying stuff for the party!

I found these cute popcorn cups at Target in the dollar section and thought they would be really cute for the party. Maybe with popcorn or maybe use them to hold cute carnival themed cookies on sticks?

I also bought this at Walmart, I figured it would be neat to serve lemonaid out of and next trip I plan on buying another one for water.

Circus Dress

2011-03-02T07:13:00.000-06:00

This weekend we have tickets to take Jillian to the circus and I wanted to make her a cute "circus" dress. I used the knot dress pattern again and instead of using just one fabric for the skirt I used different panels of fabric. Also, instead of putting the knots in the front I sewed them to the front and knotted the back in the center. I think it turned out really cute! If I have time this week I am probably going to add some type of circus applique to the apron part of the dress.

Front:

Back:

Roll Turtle

2011-03-01T20:52:00.000-06:00

I received a custom order for an Alabama burp cloth and a turtle bib with matching burp cloth and wanted to share them with you!

I love how they all turned out.

BBQ Cups

2011-02-28T19:55:00.000-06:00

This recipe was one of Michael's favorites when he was a kid. For Michael's birthday last year his mom made him a cookbook with all of his favorite recipes from when he was a kid this one is a hit in our house!

Start by browning 1 pound of hamburger meat.

To the meat add 1 cup of BBQ sauce

next spread store bought bisquits (I like the buttermilk kind) into a muffin tin.

Then fill the "well" with the BBQ meat mixture.

Bake at 350 for about 12 minutes (until the edges start to brown)

I didn't have any shredded chesse the night I made these so I chopped up some cheese slices, either would work just find. Once the edges of the bisquits have started to brown take them out and top with the cheese of your choice.

Then put them back into the oven until the cheese is melted.

Another way I like to make this is instead of using BBQ sauce I make sloppy joe mix and use that, it's super yummy too! Enjoy!

My Grandma Sjoholm's Peanut Butter Stuff

2011-02-28T06:40:00.000-06:00

This recipe is one of my favorite recipes that my grandma Sjoholm used to make. My grandma used to substitute teach at my dad's school when he was a kid and this "Peanut Butter Stuff" was one of the desserts the cafeteria ladies would make. My dad and aunts loved it so much my grandma got the recipe from the cafeteria ladies and started making it herself. She would make it every time we visited her and every time I make it I think about my grandma!

Grandma Sjoholm's Peanut Butter Stuff:

Start by bringing 1 cup of sugar, 1 cup of karo syrup and 1 stick of butter to a "soft" boil (235 degrees).

Then mix in 1 cup of peanut butter.

Pour the mixture over 2 cups of Rice Krispie Treats and 2 cups of Cheerios, mix well.

Spread mixture into a buttered dish & let cool. I always double the recipe because I use a large Pyrex dish and I like the bars extra thick.

Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss!

2011-02-27T20:48:00.000-06:00

In honor of Dr. Seuss's birthday Jillian's daycare is celebrating Read Across America and each day they having special snacks, dressing up silly, making crafts and doing other neat things. Me being the crafty mom I am wanted to make a special treat to bring to class. This is my take on a treat for "One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish."

First I used a red paint pen to write "One Fish, Two Fish" and "Red Fish, Blue Fish" on 15 clear plastic cups. I bought the cups at the Dollar Tree, 10 for $1.00.

Then I mixed up two boxes of Berry Blue Jello according to the directions. I poured the jello evenly into the 15 plastic glasses.

I let the jello set up for about an hour in the refrigerator and then placed 2 red fish into each cup. I also got the red fish at the Dollar Tree.

After putting the fish in I then mixed up 2 more boxes of Berry Blue Jello and poured it over the fish. Once the jello sets up you'll have a yummy Blue Berry "One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish" snack!

More Carnival Ideas

2011-02-25T08:06:00.002-06:00

I spent some time yesterday searching online for other cute carnival ideas and here are some of things I've come up with.

Family Fun has this cute idea for a photo board, now I just need someone that can paint to make me one.... any volunteers????

Aren't these invitation "tickets" adorable?

Look at this carnival party that was shared at Celebrations At Home (check out this page, there are TONS more AWESOME photos)!

I found this PRECIOUS tutorial on how to make this Big Top Pinata at Cute As A Fox.

Promise you won't laugh?!?!?

2011-02-24T11:23:00.000-06:00

If I tell you something you promise you won't laugh at me?!?!?

Promise?!?!?!?

Are you sure?!?!?!?

Okay, I guess I'll tell you.....

I'm already planning Jillian's birthday party and it's 10 months away!

Are you laughing?!?!?!?

Every time Jillian hears about a birthday party she asks me if there are going to be party games. This year we went the "easy" route with the party and just rented a bounce place at the mall. Jillian had a BLAST but sadly, there were no party games.

I've decided that this year we are going to have a 4th Birthday Carnival!

I want to make most of the stuff so I have to start planning now since her birthday is right after Christmas. If I wait until the last minute for everything I will be stressed with all the holiday stuff going on.

I plan on renting a room at our local Community Center and have the party there since there is a lot of room.

So far I know I want to have the following activities for the kids:

*all of the photos are from Carnival Savers

Bean Bag Toss

Fishing Game

Duck Game

Face Painting

I also know I want to have some yummy carnival snacks.

Do you have any good ideas for me? Any tips?

Barbie Girl Emma

2011-02-23T09:01:00.000-06:00

One of my best friends daughter, Emma, just turned 4 and I was so excited to be able to make her birthday party outfit. Like most 4 year-olds Emma is a total Barbie Girl and had to have a Barbie party! We knew we wanted a 4 on the shirt and Emma's name somewhere on it so this is what I came up with. I'm not sure if you can tell from the picture but the fabric in the 4 has little black Barbie shoes all over it!

Of course this Barbie Girl couldn't just wear regular jeans with her party shirt, I decided to add a ruffle of matching fabric to the bottom of the jeans.

3 year old pics - a little late but better than never!

2011-02-22T21:24:00.001-06:00

This weekend we were finally able to take Jillian's 3 year pictures, of course they are only about 2 months late but I guess it's better than never! She did so good it was hard to choose a few of my favorites!

Spring Fling - 14 Days of Fabulous Giveaways!

2011-02-22T11:25:00.000-06:00

I just signed up to take part in Wildflowers & Whimsy's Spring Fling Giveaway! Spring Fling is going to be 14 days of different blog giveaways with two different giveaways each day! There are still a few more spots available if you are interested in joining in!

I'm not 100% sure what I'm going to be giving away yet but it will probably be a custom shirt! I can't wait for the first giveaway on March 20!

Alyse Taylor's Chicken Pot Pie

2011-02-07T13:38:00.000-06:00

One night this summer Jillian and I had dinner at the Taylor's house and Alyse made a WONDERFUL Chicken Pot Pie. She shared the recipe with me and I wanted to share it with you!

Start by boiling your chicken (I used 2 LARGE chicken breasts) then either shred the chicken or cube it.

Then in a large bowl mix the following ingredients:

1 can Cream of Chicken Soup

1 can Cream of Mushroom Soup

2 Cans mixed vegetables

1 cup of sour cream (I used light)

1 cup of chicken stock/broth

Salt and Pepper to taste (I only added pepper)

Add cooked Chicken to the mixture and spread evenly in a 9x13 baking dish.

The topping:

In a bowl mix 1 cup of flour, 1 stick of butter (melted) and 1 cup of milk.

Spread mixture evenly over the top of the pot pie.

Bake at 350 for 45-60 minutes (until brown)

Serve up and enjoy!

Adding a Ruffle to Jeans

2011-02-06T22:22:00.000-06:00

I decided that Jillian's new dress would be really cute with some jeans with a ruffle of matching fabric added. This is a perfect way to find a use for jeans that have become too short. I have a tall skinny mini so her jeans are always too short but fit good in the waist. A few weeks ago I was in walmart and they had some jeans on clearance for a dollar but all was left was 18M. I knew these would fit her in the waist so I bought a few pairs!

Start by cutting off the bottom of the jeans to get rid of the "bulk" hem.

Next decide how high you want your ruffle to be. My floral print is 4 inches high and the blue is 2 inches. I doubled each so that I could just fold in half and get 4 inches (floral) or 2 inches (blue) to avoid having to hem. I made the length of each piece of fabric 4 times the width of the bottom of the jeans. My width was 6 inches so the width of the fabric was 24 inches.

Fold each in half and iron it. Stack one blue strip on top of the floral strip.

Next you will sew the two strips together at the top and side.

Next start pinning the ruffle to the jeans. The jeans and the ruffle will be right sides facing each other.

A good way to start is pinning the sides and the center of each side. Then gather the fabric and pin the rest together.

The last step is you sew the ruffle to the jeans! When you are done sewing flip the ruffle down, press and you are finished!

Two Plus Jilly

Family Pictures

Carnival 4th Birthday Party

Top Posts from 2011

I'm still here.... I PROMISE!

Unicorn

Wreaths, Wreaths and More Wreaths pt. 3

Wreaths, Wreaths and More Wreaths pt.2

Wreaths, Wreaths and More Wreaths!

Womb Mates

Parmesan Knots - Pintrest Find

Roll Tide Wreath

Roll Tide

stuff I've been working on

Homemade Playdough

Pampered Chef & a GIVEAWAY!!!!

Kiss Pies

Rainbow Popsicle Dessert

At Home Gel Nails

Bath Robe

Burps!

SPRINKLE Cookies!

Do you use Swagbucks?!?!?

Mexican Dorito Casserole

Mountain Dew Voltage Cake

How You Can Help

say a prayer

New Trampoline

Jellybean Pizza

Custom from Spring Fling Giveaway

Stuff We've Bought - Part 1

Wildflowers & Whimsy: Skye Reve Fabrics Giveaway

Margarita Cupcakes

Easter Egg Time!

Spring Is Here at Pier 1

Chicken Chimichangas

Dance Pictures

Buffalo Chicken Dip

Spring Pictures

Will you do me a favor????

Cookies 'N' Creme Brownies

Spring Fling Giveaway Final Day!

Spring Fling Giveaway Day 13

Stuffed Hot Dogs

Spring Fling Giveaway Day 12 - MY WINNER ANNOUNCED!

Spring Fling Giveaway Day 11

A little Spring, A little Minnie

Spring Fling Giveaway Day 10

Hoo Are You Tuesday

Spring Fling Giveaway Day 9 - MY GIVEAWAY DAY!!!!!!!

Faux Stained Glass

Spring Fling Giveaway Day 8

Too Short Jeans Into Shorts!

Spring Fling Giveaway Day 7

Spring Fling Giveaway Day 6

Before I blogged... my applique work

Spring Fling Giveaway Day 5

Welcome Pillsbury Visitors!

Spring Fling Giveaway Day 4

Hoo Are you Tuesday

Spring Fling Giveaway Day 3

Painted T-Shirt with Freezer Paper Stencil

Spring Fling Giveaway Day 2

Spring Fling Giveaway Day 1

Mini Monkey Bread

Dollar Tree Easter Crafts!

Hoo Are you?

Tie-Dye with Sharpies!

Spring Fling Giveaway!

Funny Pie

Easter Egg Wreath

Fun at the Circus

How to make a Fabric Yo-Yo Headband

Circus Tent

New Blog Design

Carnival Purchases

Circus Dress

Roll Turtle

BBQ Cups

My Grandma Sjoholm's Peanut Butter Stuff